Northern Vantage rounds up some recent eBay activity involving various Mayhem-related artifacts, many being very significant pieces of black metal history: https://my.opera.com/NorthernVantage/blog/2007/05/31/mayhem-related-ebay-auctions
The Lords of Metal webzine has an interview with Manes: https://www.lordsofmetal.nl/showinterview.php?id=1762&lang=en
Singer/songwriter Jonna Lee has signed with Razzia and will be releasing her new album in early September. Listen to samples here: https://www.myspace.com/jonnaleemusic
Swedish indie act Pinto has posted a new version of their song "Iron and rust" on myspace, this one featuring guest vocals from ex-Granada vocalist Anna Järvinen: https://www.myspace.com/pintopintopinto
AllEars.se "discovery" Emmy aka Johanna Christine Stribrant will have her first single "Sommar varje da!" officially released on June 13 via Bonnier Amigo. Does Frida have competition for this year's sommarplåga? Listen at myspace: https://www.myspace.com/emmyplace
Check out an e-card for the German release of Kristofer Åström's excellent new record "RainawayTown": https://www.v2digital.net/de/kastrom/
The Soundtrack of Our Lives will play a few gigs at North By Northwest to support the release of "Origins Vol. 2":
06/07 - Healey's Roadhouse, Toronto
06/08 - Silver Dollar, Toronto
06/09 - Healey's Roadhouse, Toronto
Danish act Dúné has posted some new tracks from their new album on myspace: https://www.myspace.com/dunesite
MP3: Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Ashen like the sky
A new month and a new Record Club selection means that my usual Friday flashback post has been preempted. June's pick: "Fall, fall, falling" from Göteborg-based artist Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, an absolute crushing record. As DLSODW mainman Thomas Ekelund himself puts it, "It's about yearning, for what was, for what could've been or for it to never have existed. It's about breaking down...apart... up. It's about grotesque reactions and the distortion of memories. It's about self-destruction, -mutilation and -loathing. It's about scars/shards. It's about that sinking feeling. It's about falling." Make no mistake, this is a devastating work, but like all of the best doom-oriented music, its innate sense of foreboding and suffocation is tempered with aching beauty. It's in the darkness that the inspiration and the will to carry on is rediscovered. This is not brutality for brutality's sake, like Brighter Death Now for instance, this is looking deeper.
Previous Dead Letters work tended towards minimalist drone and, while that's still very present, Ekelund has now started to work with much more well-defined rhythms and melody. Today's mp3 selection "Ashen like the sky" is one of the more extreme examples, sounding something like Godflesh buried at sea. A lot of electronic music can seem cold and distant, but I find that Dead Letters always retains a strong sense of earth or organicness, something I attribute to the fact that everything he does sounds as if it's been rolled in shit and dirt. The method behind the music is digital, but the feeling is very human, very real. The result is very powerful and, naturally, very highly recommended.
Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Ashen like the sky
MP3: Park Hotell - Born a thief
Luleå-based indierockers Park Hotell managed to score a nice bit of publicity thanks to Mattias Alkberg's flattering one-sheet writeup. That's fine and good, but how about the music? Well, surprise surprise: they sound like a Norrland indierock band. Naturally, I think that's great - I'm a huge fan of that style and besides the mighty Bear Quartet, count many other peers as my favorites such as KVLR, Him Kerosene and Isolation Years. Park Hotell emphasizes the lighter, airier side of things though that looming presence of northern darkess always remains in the background. Otherwise, expect tons of twisted guitars and plenty of the sort of unique melodies that are a given for the genre. "Born a thief" is one of the more driving tracks on "The guest who stayed forever", the bands new double-EP (two short CDs packaged in a nice gatefold sleeve). It's probably the one song that reminds me the most of HK which is maybe why I like it so much. My only complaint: it's a shame we had to wait so long for this to finally come out.
Park Hotell - Born a thief
It's A Trap! t-shirts are here! This first run is fairly limited, so act fast. Otherwise, feel free to make color/size requests for the future.
In case you didn't notice, there's another big batch of new reviews posted: [click here]
Swedish punk label Putrid Filth Conspiracy has been dormant for awhile, but they'll be making a triumphant comeback in the near future with the release of the new Rajoitus LP.
Preview the new single from Norwegian rockers and "Reader's companion" alums WE: https://www.nunmusic.com/releases.php
It's called "That's why (You're so fine)" and will officially be released on June 18.